Jason Te Kare directed, wrote and stars in Cellfish which is in Whangārei next week. Photo / Supplied
Eight counts of unlawful entry using imagination, five counts of reckless use of Māori mythology, four counts possession and cultivation of Shakespeare, and one count of dangerous operation of a voice class.
In the play Cellfish, hardened inmates come face to face with a whole new nightmare - Shakespeare classes
with Miss Lucy.
After sell-out seasons at Auckland's Silo Theatre, and the 2017 Auckland Arts Festival, acclaimed theatre work Cellfish will be in Whangārei for one night only.
Offset with wicked humour, the show gives agency to the voiceless - characters whose lives are framed by incarceration and challenged by the penal system.
The show, by Taki Rua and T.O.A. Productions, stars actors Jason Te Kare, who is also the director, and Carrie Green.
Written by Te Kare, Rob Mokaraka and Miriama McDowell, Cellfish is inspired by the Shakespeare Behind Bars programme - a real rehabilitation method used in the United States.
Te Kare said while these programmes are proven more effective than traditional punishment, the alternative approach can be hard for people to get their heads around.
"Especially emotionally for victims of crime, you feel they [offenders] need to be punished for what they have done, but at the end of the day, is that going to make our society better or worse when they get out? Because inevitably they get out," Te Kare said.
While the show hits some hard truths, a distinctly dark comedy is woven throughout the play.
